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CEO of Brilliant Defends Sneaky Installation Practices
Em Emalb and other readers sent in follow-ups to our earlier story about yet more bundled crapware with Kazaa. Kazaa says they didn't do anything wrong; and so does Brilliant's CEO. I don't understand why anyone is still installing Kazaa, given their track record. Brilliant's brilliant plan is to use your computer to distribute their advertising, and give out Altnet resource dollars in exchange.
Since the software isbeing used for illegal purposes, could the advertisers be liable? They are supporting it, after all...
Best Slashdot Co
I was coming in here to post just this comment.
I told my brother, my girlfriend and my sister about the spyware and the distributed client, and you know what? They don't give two shits.
Kazaa is the best way to get what they're looking for, and they don't care about anything else. Period. I have a friend who, instead of downloading music is now downloading music videos with Kazaa.
Sure it strikes me as odd that nobody cares, but that's why they're still installing Kazaa.
For the umpteenth time, the com.com domain is real. news.com.com is C|Net's tech news site. Yes, it is an incredibly stupid address, and they probably blew tons of money buying it from some lucky bastard, but that does not change that you are now dubbed Moron #582998 for so brilliantly pointing out the domain and chiming in with the millionth post about how it must be fake because of the com.com.
A simple whois could have saved you the trouble of pointing out your ignorance:
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Registrant:
CNET Networks, Inc (COM2994-DOM)
235 2nd Street
San Francisco, CA 94104
US
Domain Name: COM.COM
Administrative Contact:
Domain Contact, CNET Administrative (AD417) domain-admin@CNET.COM
CNET: The Computer Network
150 Chestnut Street
San Francisco, California 94111
(415) 364-8900
Technical Contact:
Hostmaster, CNET (HC165) hostmaster@CNET.COM
CNET: The Computer Network
150 Chestnut Street
San Francisco, California 94111
(415) 364-8900
Billing Contact:
idNames, Accounting (IA90-ORG) accounting@IDNAMES.COM
idNames from Network Solutions, Inc
440 Benmar
Suite #3325
Houston, TX 77060
US
703-742-4777
Fax- - 281-447-1160
Record last updated on 04-Dec-2001.
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Do you feel stupid now?
I don't understand why anyone is still installing Kazaa, given their track record.
You get free sharing across a network, at the price of some advertising.
Lemmie put it into terms slashdotters will understand, at the cost of my karma (cause michael will slap this down in a matter of seconds):
I logged into slashdot today to find that there are LARGE ads in the middle of their articles! I don't understand why people use this site, after their trackrecord of ignoring their users, abusing their power, and insulting the users!
Is that example a troll? A flamebait?
Then so is the article explanation by michael!
Good quote, too many chars. Seriously, the slashdot 120 char limit sucks!
I support several computer labs at a community college and kids constantly install these unathorized programs in the labs. The computers have some much crap on them that they have to be reimaged routinely. These media arts computers are so overloaded with Photoshop, QuarkXpress, Freehand, etc. that they are touchy anyway. Now add yahoo! messenger, msn messenger, song spy, audio galaxy, etc plus all the spyware crap to every machine. I did convince the powers that be that general labs should be linux or dual boot.
I find it ironic that a wildly popular peer-to-peer tools that scares the bejesus out of the media conglomerates is being positioned as the secure delivery vehicle to cater to those same media conglomerates. Were I truly paranoid, I could dream up a scenario in which the RIAA were far more clever than we ever imagined and (a) pursued P2P tools via legal attacks while (b) preparing to use their popularity to distribute their own "secure" network tools for which they hold the keys. Then again, perhaps these Brilliant people are really just clever enough to figure out how to sell P2P to the media giants in a form they can stomach. A fancy trick, that, if they they pull it off.
Tangent:
It's weird, but as I've become a more experienced computer and software user, I've learned that less software is better for me and for my system. This is just one more example of that, as I see it. But unfortunately most computer users (by which, I suppose I mean Windows users) end up downloading dozens of programs they don't want or need. When I check out a family member's or friend's Windows computer they always have these huge Programs menus with entries they don't even recognize anymore. I suspect a lot of people will be surprised if this method of software delivery is copycatted (and I see no reason why it won't catch on very quickly) and months after they've downloaded, installed, and forgotten that VisualBasic gadget du jour that they got from C|Net's download center wakes up the trojan that came along for the ride and starts offering to sell them printer ink or viagra or green cards.
Curmudgeon Gamer: Not happy
Check your Windows folder out. Do a Find Files for Brilliant Digital and BDE (Caution: I believe you may find some files from a Borland app that have BDE in them too). Look in your registry too; there's a whole thwack of Brilliant Digital entries in there too.
Use Grokster. Cydoor can be disabled with tool available on the web and still allow Cydoor infected apps to run. I would look it up but I'm sure someone with your considerable computer prwowess can find it.
So...ahh...if you didn't get all of these files, does this make you a moron too?
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I didn't want to leave this space blank.
I was looking for a Linux version of Kazaa and I found giFT. Has anyone used this? It sounds good in theory but is it very usefull in practice?
As I understand things, this software, activated and operating as a content server on my PC, would put me in violation of AT&T Broadband's acceptable use policy for cable modem service (don't bitch at me about how dumb the policy is, I don't like it any better than anyone else and I work for Broadband). The "penalty" for such violations can include having my cable modem service terminated. In such a case, where Brilliant has not taken steps to notify me of the software functions or to check about such term violations, shouldn't they be held responsible for my loss of service?
Key is to MAKE SURE YOU ARE RUNNING A SOFTWARE FIREWALL
*sighs wistfully* Anyone else remember the good ol' days when you'd run a firewall to keep the bad guy outside from coming in?
Nowadays it's all about preventing the bad stuff which is already inside from getting out.
Ah well, that's progress I guess...
I like the idea in some respects, but if it's anything like the opt-in distributed-computing projects (distributed.net, prime95, etc.), it hangs around forever, raising three issues:
1. Imagine the overhead of 30 or 40 of those programmes fighting over your CPU.
2. When have I made my penance?
3. Why does the guy with the 486/50 get the package essentially free, but my Thunderbird 1200 gives them loads of useful work in exchange?
I'd be more comfortable with a system where you "buy" the product with a specific piece of work, perhaps built into the installer. I'd like to see something like this:
"To cover the cost of this programme, we want to use your computer to help solve: 'New Preservative Design for Twinkies, Inc.'. Your contribution will require 1.7M of download, a 500k upload of the results, and approximately 25 hours of CPU time on a Pentium III/500. When your contribution is complete, the distributed-computing component will be automatically and completely removed from the system. [OK][Cancel][Huh?]"
The ALTNET / b3d client does seem to install itself without asking you, but it sits quietly in the "installed programs" list, and can be uninstalled in 3 clicks (which I performed yesterday after reading Brilliant's plans for ALTNET).
.dll and so on that sit in the b3d directory that do not get removed during an uninstall.
t al ler
t al ler.1
6 -0 000E84F59A6}
9 C6 -0000E842E40A}
u rr entVersion\Run
Umm . . . . not exactly.
There are more then a few entries that sit in your registry even after an uninstall. Not to mention all the
The b3d projector is actually set to reinstall itself if you visit their website using kazaa. So a simple uninstall doesn't do dick.
In order to really, truly get rid of b3d and all its assorted crap, you have to remove all of this:
c:\Windows\BDE (the whole folder)
c:\Windows\Temp\Brilliant (another folder which may or may not be there)
c:\Windows\SYSTEM\bdedata2.dll
c:\Windows\SYSTEM\bdedownloader.dll
c:\Windows\SYSTEM\bdefdi.dll
c:\Windows\SYSTEM\bdeinsta2.dll
c:\Windows\SYSTEM\bdeinstall.exe
c:\Windows\SYSTEM\bdesecureinstall.cab
c:\Windows\SYSTEM\bdesecureinstall.exe
c:\Windows\SYSTEM\bdeverify.dll
c:\Windows\SYSTEM\bdeverify.exe
you also need to pull this out of the registry:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.b3ds
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\b3ds_auto_file
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\BDESmartInstaller.BDESmartIns
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\BDESmartInstaller.BDESmartIns
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{67925165-C4B6-11D2-B9C
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\TypeLib\{82FC7881-AACC-11D2-B
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Brilliant Digital Entertainment
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Zupdate
you also need to remove the b3dupdate value in
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\C
This damn thing has its tentacles all over the place. To get more info on removing b3d and other kaaza realted crap, go here
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One of us needs to stick ones' head in a bucket of ice water.
- Hobbes
Excluding hardcore computer users, most users don't give much thought to the ramifications of the software package they choose. They know they want free music. Buzz words like spyware confuse them.
The world has stopped caring about right and wrong when it comes to business. Most people use M$ products without giving it another thought- I refuse to because what they do as a company - the illegal trade practices - makes them a company I don't want to give sales to.
We need to stop using programs that contain spyware because it is WRONG to put spyware in programs. We need to stop buying from dishonest/immoral companies. We need to actually think about what programs we use/businesses we frequent/companies we purchase from. Then we won't need so many regulatory laws- consumers will applaud honesty and buy from honest companies, and will refuse to buy from dishonest companies, or in this case refusing to use Kazaa, a program that generates funds for Brilliant, thus putting them out of business.
Unless you are truly a power user, you do not have bandwidth to share. Your ISP probably sells you service, not bandwidth. That's why you can't call up your provider and say "Hey, when I download pr0n at 8PM my download is really slow, where's all that bandwidth I bought?". That's also why service providers are not happy about people setting up neighborhood 802.11 networks with only one person paying them for service (hey, you're just sharing your bandwidth, right?). No internet service ever gives you a gaurantee of throughput. In fact, every service provider over sells their bandwidth because most of your online time is spent reading not receiving (or sending).
You don't own the bandwidth, your provider does. If Brilliant is using that bandwidth, and is not providing the user with anything and is detrimental to the service of other people using that service provider, what you have is misappropriated bandwidth. With any luck AT&T will show up at Brilliant's office asking them to pay for it.
What Brilliant is doing is trying to make money by carving it out of the margins of the providers who would normally charge advertisers for hosting. The same amount of load is on the network, but the people carrying the load will get less income for it (and none of those companies have fat margins anymore).
Education is a better safeguard of liberty than a standing army.
Edward Everett (1794 - 1865)
There's more to it than meets the eye. I used to think I was fine when I unchecked all the options too. But alas, Cydoor still installs, along with B3d. Thank god there is a free utility for removing the stupid Cydoor shit with a clone so Kazaa will still run.. or Grokster.. whichever you prefer..
Hmm... looks to me like while the RIAA spent all that time whining and crying and complaining about "piracy," they missed out on a promising business model.
"Here, you can download all of our music you can stomach, as long as you let us load software on your personal computer that lets us use your unused bandwidth and CPU cycles."
Sounds fscking brilliant to me... too bad the record company execs would rather whine than innovate.
I can see the fnords!
Thus my tail-comment about sidestream effects. I recognized immediately that the example was not ideal -- just the best I could come up with on almost no sleep. And I agree with you on the "smoking in the same" room philosophy, although I'm more likely to just fart next to you. Less blunt, but certainly more fun.
GreyPoopon
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Why is it I can write insightful comments but can't come up with a clever signature?
I wish I had mod points today, I'd give yours an "insightful" on the spot. But since I don't, I'll put in my two cents instead..
I think you nailed it square on the head. It's largely just hoarding. And these are the same people who would NOT buy music (software, whatever) if they couldn't get it for free. They're not buyers no matter what. And they don't really care HOW they enlarge their collexion or what risks it entails, but they're terrified of LOSING any of it.
~REZ~ #43301. Who'd fake being me anyway?